John Nichols writes that the president's calls for free trade weakened another excellent discussion of income inequality and how to fix it. Back in 2008 on the campaign trail, Obama tied trade deals to growing inequality, and Nichols says that's still true.

Suzy Khimm argues that the State of the Union emphasized the ways that Congress is blocking even the policies that both parties agree on. The president's willingness to work around Congress, as with his executive order raising the minimum wage for federal contractors, could be key.

Tom Farrey reports on the Northwestern University football team's first steps toward collective bargaining. On Tuesday, they filed a petition and unions cards with the National Labor Relations Board, becoming the first college athletes to attempt to unionize.

Bryce Covert reports on the newest in a wave of paid sick leave laws, which the mayor of Newark, NJ has promised to sign. This is the second municipality in New Jersey to mandate paid sick leave, which she says puts more pressure on statewide lawmakers.

Roosevelt Institute Associate Director of Networked Initiatives Alan Smith urges anchor institutions, like universities or hospitals, to consider ways that they can quickly improve their economic impact, like paying a living wage and requiring contractors to do the same.

Roosevelt Institute Senior Fellow Richard Kirsch says that the introduction of a GOP plan for replacing Obamacare gives Democrats a moment of opportunity. Comparing this plan to the Affordable Care Act demonstrates the ways the Republican plan will harm the health care system.